The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1887-07-30
THE MAGIC OF MONEY.
How Attorney Amasa Snow Got
on His Feet.

Amasa Snow sat in his little law Of
flee, his feet on the top rim of his stove,
and his stove full of wood and red hot.
His office was about rod from his
house, and quite near the high wooden
gate leading into the village street.
Over the door one read: "ProthOnotary
and Attorney-at-law." 1t was huge,
faded sign in black letters; one could
not go by Amasa Shows Office and not
know of the business of its occupant.
The trouble with the sign was it was
not alluring enough. Squire Slayton,
down the street, with very small sign
and over a grocery store, and without
a big wide house, and family name
and conncction-Squire Slayton some
how got all the business there was go
ing in East Chesterville Amasa Snow
sat tilted back IN his wooden armchair,
pulling his long chin beard, scratching
the few gray hairs in his sloping gray
head, and trying to cOnjure up some
new scheme by which he could beat
Slayton again, and defer the foreclosure
sale. He had deferred it five times on
one excuse and another; but Stay
ton had him this time; there was
no help for it, The old place would
have to be sold-the old place where
his boyhood had been passed until he
went away to college, and where he
had lived ever since, and seen his six
girls grow up about him. His six girls!
He reached down and broke splinter
off bit of pine-wood by the stove,
and began to chew hard on it. What
would become of the girlsP Every one
a beauty in his eyes; every one worthy
of marrying the Governor of the State.
How could he tell them that the sale Of
their old home could be postponed no
longer; that every device and trick,
and every legal bubble, had been tried
and tried againP He dared not tell the
girls. He looked out of the window
it was raining An April shower, tc
be sure, with prospect of golden
sunset later on, but making every thing
outside under the trees look very mud,
dy and dismal. Amasa Snow felt very
depressed. Fate appeared to be against
him.
What was to be done? He had Dor.
rowcd from every one in the town. He
could borrow no longer. If the ole
place were sold at twice its value i
would not pay his debts. He had liveC
well, and his six motherless girls hat
never known how poor he was. "Ohp
he groaned, as he rose and stood will
his back to that hot stove-"oh, how
can get on my feet?"
There were his law books-a coupl,
of thousand dingy calf volumes, no
kept up TO date, the inheritance from
the Judge. his father, but even the Law
books were 'chatteled,' as they said
1. C., mortgage quite beyond their value
Every thing he had, in fact, was mort
gagged. He had come this wet Apri
day TO the end of things. Mex
week came the sale. He felt like say
ing-tho delugo. He had not enough
money to take him and his family on
West.
That was his .plan-to go West. H
hardly felt his fifty years. He fol
young and energetic when he though
Of the West By the way, there wa
his brother, Elisha-his brother who il
his youth was so much like him. II
vas West-in California. He had no
seen him for twenty years. The las
he had heard from him was arequest t,
send on hundred dollars. That wa
five years ago. He had sent him fifty
and nothing had been heard from
Elisha since, except his name indOrse,
across the back of the check, shown,
THAT he had reee we'd the money.
No. it was clear that Elisha coul'
Rcyor help him. Elisha had cause,